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Measurement of the Diffusion Coefficient of Boron in Soil Using a Single Cell Technique¹

ABSTRACT

The porous system diffusion coefficient, D_p, of boron in a loam soil was measured by means of a single cell technique. Boron diffused from a semi-infinite medium of uniform initial concentration to a sink of constant concentration which was separated from the soil by a dialysis membrane. A polyethylene glycol (PEG) 6,000 solution circulated through the sink and controlled the soil matric suction osmotically. The diffusive flux at the soil and membrane interface was treated as an evaporative process. The value of D_p was found to be 2.44 ± 0.17 x 10^-6 cm²/sec when the bulk density of the soil and the volumetric moisture content were 1.30 gm/cm³ and 0.31, respectively.

The significance of the equilibria between absorbed and solution B on the diffusion rate of B was also studied. Addition to the soil of boric acid solutions of concentrations lower than 1 ppm resulted in a capacity factor and solution B concentration which were lower than the corresponding values when water containing no B was added. As a consequence, the quantity of B diffusing into the sink from the boron-treated soil was less than that from the untreated soil.

Contribution from the Dep. of Soil Science, Univ. of Guelph, Canada. This paper is a portion of the thesis submitted by the senior author in partial fulfillment of the M.S. degree. Appreciation is expressed to the Canadian Int. Dev. Agency for the scholarship granted to the senior author. Presented before Div. S-2, Soil Science Society of America at New York, N.Y., August 1971.

² Graduate Student and Assistant Professor respectively. The senior author is now located at College of Agriculture, Malaya, Sungai Basi, Selangor, Malaysia.

Received for publication August 5, 1971. Accepted for publication June 8, 1972.